When I used to go on my photo/ camping trips, I went to bed a lot earlier, so I woke up earlier. When timed right and bundled up warm, it's quite a sight watching the last stars disappear, the sky getting brighter, the birds start chirping and flying and the sun comes up. It happens faster than a person would think.
My vantage points were almost always from old logging landings so I had a clear view off across the distant hills and also down below into the valleys where dense fog would settle, looking like they were filled with milk.